Your child has a better chance of succeeding in college if she masters school survival skills now. Here's how you can help her get organized and learn to study effectively.

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By GreatSchools Staff

"Be sure to study for the test on Friday," one of your child's teachers is certain to say some day soon.

Does your child know how?

While many teachers spend some class time teaching study skills, students often need more guidance than they get in the classroom. In middle school, there's more homework, it becomes more difficult and it requires analytical skills your child may not have developed yet.

The study skills your child needs to do well on her test on Friday are the same ones she will need to succeed in high school and college: getting organized, taking good notes and studying effectively.

As your child moves toward independence, she's less likely to ask for your advice. She will need to go through some trial and error to come up with the strategies most compatible with her learning style. And you'll want to encourage her to take responsibility for her own school work. You can help her by monitoring homework, asking questions and helping her evaluate what works for her — and what doesn't.

Helping your child get organized

Getting organized is crucial for your child, says Linda Winburn, a veteran South Carolina middle school teacher who became the state's 2005 Teacher of the Year. "And the key is parent involvement."

Some tips to help your child get organized:

Provide a place to study.

It doesn't have to be a desk, says Winburn. "A kitchen counter is a great place, especially if mom's in the kitchen cooking."

The desk or table surface should be big enough so that your student can spread out papers and books. Make sure essential supplies such as pens, paper and calculator are close by. Have good lighting and a sturdy chair that's the right height available.

Help your child develop a system to keep track of important papers.

If your child tends to forget to turn in homework or can't quite keep track of how he's doing in a class, it might help to get him a binder with a folder in the front for completed work ready to be turned in and a folder in the back for papers returned by the teacher.

"For me, staying organized meant creating a system — any system — and sticking to it," says Gabriela Kipnis, now a student at the University of Pennsylvania. "I had fun color-coding, organizing and using dividers, but the truth is, all that mattered was that there was a method that I stuck with."

Make sure your child has — and uses — a planner to keep track of assignments.

Help your child get in the habit of writing down each daily assignment in each subject and checking it off when it's complete. Some schools provide these to students, and if not, you might want to work with your PTA or parent organization to provide planners at your school.

Encourage your child to estimate how long each assignment will take.

He can then plan a realistic schedule, building in study breaks after subjects that are most challenging, and allowing for soccer games and band practice. Helping your child keep track of time spent studying — rather than staring at a blank page — will help him think about how he's using his time. If he's spending too much time on a subject that might be a signal that he needs extra help or tutoring.

Help your child break big projects into smaller ones.

A big research project will seem less overwhelming and will be less likely to be left until the last minute if it's done in manageable chunks, each with its own deadline.

Communicate with your child's teachers.

If your child is struggling with organizational skills, talk to the school counselor or teachers about what might be causing the problems and brainstorm approaches to solve them.

Related links

Comments from GreatSchools.org readers

"pls help my 13year old is really not doing well with her studies,she is
currently below average.what do I do?
"

04/12/2012:

"I really like your aproach with this help study,I guess not only does this
help my grandchild but this help me also Thanks alot.
"

03/5/2012:

"My daughter is going to high school next year and, thanks to SOL's and NO
TEXT BOOKS, hasn't learned "how to learn" or study yet. Memorizing a
handful of SOL bullet items isn't "learning." Situations have already come
up where knowing how to learn and basic study skills were needed and she
was lost. I need to find an online course, community college summer
course, at-home program, SOMETHING to prepare her before high school next
year! Any suggestions?
"

02/6/2012:

"This reallly helped my son! Thanks!
"

01/17/2012:

"I just loved this article it is so useful to help my ADD child of 13
years from grade 7.
"

12/14/2011:

"i think redecorating a room helps because you can get a nice desk and a
radio next to it to help you study
"

12/1/2011:

"Study skills has longed seem to me to be a euphemism for 'memorization'.
You're not really 'studying' - you're trying to memorize.
That said, the first 'study skill' is figuring out how the teacher tests.
Does the teacher give short answer tests? Multiple choice tests? Or essay
tests? Does the teacher focus on concepts or on details? Are the tests
make up by the publisher of the textbook or does the teacher make them up
on their own?
Any single chapter or single unit of material followed by a chapter test
or unit test can have sheer volumes of information. Any Middle Schooler
can easily feel overwhelmed - where to begin?
In the better world, maybe we'll finally stop giving closed-book
memorization based tests but till then school will favor those students
who are strong readers and who have the knack for remembering details.
That's not every student. And many classes essentially throw volumes of
information out every day without any coherent organization to it or
without an overarching concept to which all the details are related.
Once you know what kind of test is coming your way, then certainly making
sense of the information is the most important study skill but that's very
hard for students to do on their own.
"

11/16/2011:

"I need help studying for earth science because the way the tests are
written out are so completely new to me.
"

11/15/2011:

"i need help studying for my social studies test that i have tomorrow! even
though i am a straight A's student its still goingto be hard please help
meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee..........
"

11/14/2011:

"thank you for your good research an recommendation it is very useful and
hep me a lot i'm a teacher from iran .an English teacher
"

11/14/2011:

"This article was really helpful on a essay that i had to write for my mom
about homework. i am going to tell my friends to check it out.
"

11/11/2011:

"Does anyone know any tips on different ways to study??
"

10/24/2011:

"My son is great when it comes to test and quiz' Ususally getting above
90's His issue is homework and participation. He does not turn it in when
he does it and is failing regardless of test scores and semester has'nt
ended yet. We've had him tested and his scores were on top. Even with
therapy he has not improved a bit since 7th grade. What can I do to help
and prevent him from failing? Any suggestions?
"

10/20/2011:

"Thank you for addressing this very important topic.
Study skills are so fundamental to doing well academically, and sometimes
they are never taught. I also addressed this subject in my Blog article:
Organizational Skills Count http://academicachievers.wordpress.com/
"

10/17/2011:

"Thank you for showing me how i can study for tests and get better at
school i hope i pass my highschool exam!!
"

10/17/2011:

"this article helped me
"

10/12/2011:

"This website really helped me on an assignment. THANKS!!! (And by the way,
it helped me organize before I failed.)
"

10/7/2011:

"Im in 7th grade, and Im... a D and F student. Not because I dont pay
attention, or Hate school, but its because I'm new to it all. I'm
wondering if this means i'm one of the not smart ones. I try hard though,
but it just doesn't seem to get me though. I'm hoping this article will
help me, because I don't wanna be held back, and have my friends go ahead.
I could LOSE friends that way, and become lonely.
Im trying this out, and hoping (i'm Atheist, so I really don't pray) that
it all works out :) "

09/15/2011:

"i found that the blog still didn't answer my questions.
"

09/12/2011:

"This will really help me i just noticed that i should plan out every thing
for my homework and study time.
"

07/26/2011:

"I'm going into 6th grade next year, and some advice that i'm pretty sure
would help is to find out everything you can about your school. Go to
their website and check out all the teachers website so you know what they
expect. Also, Some good study advice would be to go into a school library
and do all your homework there after school. I got A's on every single
assignment and test. But then again, I am the nerd everyone hates....
"

07/15/2011:

"this is summer vacation and i am going to 7ht grade. now, in 6th grade i
did my class work and most of the time sent my homework in 96% of the time
also. but i never had the energy to do my homework. it was because i
always stayed up late and even though i got up every morning to go to
school i still wasnt well rested so that brought me down. so this is
advice to everybody. i really sound like a dork saying this but, sleep
really does affect the way ur day will turn out and really is very
important. i never liked to admit this type of stuff because im like a
class clown and the girl everyone likes. but my advice that would like to
add to this article is to get alot of sleep also cause it also effects how
you study, and take tests, and do projects, and homework.
"

05/19/2011:

"im 12 years old and i need help studying for a science test tomorrow and i
cant seem to find a way to actually learn the key concepts. Please comment
to help me."

05/16/2011:

"Im 11 years old and am starting to panic a little, im still in the 5th
grade, every year in elementary school we have math of course, but
whenever we go to learn a subject (mostly in 5th grade) everyone always
knows what were learning before we learn the subject, i cant help feel
like im dumb. How does everyone know what were learning? In 4th and 5th
grade it was tough, i always have to nod and act like i know it when i
dont. If things are like this now im scarred to find out math in 6 grade,
i dont want to tell my teacher either. Reason number 1. she teaches me
math and i don't want her to think im dumb, which i hope im not im a B B A
A A student in 4th and 5th grade."

05/4/2011:

"cool"

09/16/2010:

"Not helpful... I was looking for something which was actually help with
the studying part. This is just common sense."

09/9/2010:

"I think that maybe you should post some tips like staying focused in
class, and some different ways to study."

05/18/2010:

"I loved this artical. I am about to enter the 6th grade, and this really
summed up 'middle school' for me!"

02/18/2010:

"i got my first C on a progress report so now i am trying to bring it up
this was really helpful"

01/12/2010:

"Why is it that all articles offering 'study skill' ideas for students only
cover how to PREPARE for the actual studying?... 'Find a quiet space',
'Organize important notes', 'Have all supplies needed in one place'....
blah, blah. Articles like this only state the obvious, EASY, parts of
study. I am constantly in search of the article that will offer different
ideas in helping my child to absorb the information needed for the test or
quiz. Everyone learns in different ways. As a result, most parents can
only offer the study skills to their child that personally work for them.
What if my study skills do not work for my daughter or son? Where is the
article that will suggest different ways to help my child retain the
information she or he needs to learn?"

11/9/2009:

"im a teen (14) and this was really just common sense.
"

11/6/2009:

"I am a teenager looking for ways to help myself study more...thanks this
did help!!!
"

09/22/2009:

"this is really helpful, i strugled to get my teenage son to study. now i
know..."

09/16/2009:

"this article seem helpful i think im gonna try it.
i need mental help with orginizing everything!!
this artical should help meh."

09/2/2009:

"This article has a lot of useful information. Thank you."

08/3/2009:

"I do like this assistance.
Thanks for this great organazation. Hope we as parents cculd particiate
and take advantage of the informations.
Thnaks"

07/7/2009:

"This is a great article. I'm 14 and starting High School in the fall and
I'm looking for tips on how to stay successful throughout my time there.
My biggest issue is being disorganized, so I'm hoping that if I follow
these tips it will make keeping my grades up a bit easier. I can already
tell some of these will work."

06/19/2009:

"I live in LA, CA. I have 2 boys that have been thru the montessori program
from pre k-7. Neither of them have any study habits. Both of them are so
bright. I want to have someone help me to teach them- i cannot do it. Do
you know of a tutor or a program that is just about study habits and do's
and don'ts.
We are pretty desperate at this point.
Please let me know.
Thanx so much,
a l i c i a m a c d o n a l d"

06/10/2009:

"This is great information. Thank you."

04/22/2009:

"thx for ur help"

02/18/2009:

"really great way to tell parents to help there kids study for tests, study
space, and more!!!!!!"

01/29/2009:

"I'm 12 and in 7th grade. I usually am very organized and always turn in my
homework on time. I participate in four different extra-curricular
activities and I get all A's. But sometimes I just don't have the
motivation to do homework. Sometimes, I stay up until 11 pm finishing
homework and I am exhausted. I really don't have that much, but I end up
staying up late because I can be a procrastinator sometimes."

10/21/2008:

"I have an auditory child who also has ADD. He is very bright keeps up with the homework and writes everything in his agenda. The problem is with quizes and test he really struggles to make good grades on tests. He takes notes and then I quiz him from the book and his notes. If you can give me some better way to help him study. He is 11 years old and loves middle school 6th grade. He started off great then the work became harder. The multiple choice questions are the worst. He does study, but will barely pass with a 70 or 67. If you have something I could follow to help him.
Frustrated parent "

09/3/2008:

"homework assignment"

08/5/2008:

"This is an awesome site. I find the info very helpful, and share with my daughter. Do extra curricular activities help chances for scholarships, entrance, etc...for college? Thanks so much!"

07/30/2008:

"I loved this article- chcok full of info as my husband and I support both our 6th grader and 4th grader in readying for school in a month. "

07/29/2008:

" I have a son going into the eighth grade impaired in some ways by
executive functioning issues relative to school work and homework.
Do you have any leads on tutors in Houston, Texas who are skilled and qualified to work with students like this ?"

07/22/2008:

"Thank you for the excellent ideas. Even though we all seem to have busy schedules, I found it very important to have specific times set aside for studying. I also came across an excellent tool on the Internet that is a big help for all age groups. "

07/17/2008:

"Thanks that was alot of good advise i even took notes."

02/20/2008:

"I thinks that this is a good place to look if you want to get help with some of the things that you learn @ school.... this websight is a great way to get a better solution on the things that you need help with in difficult classes... Another student stated that there is a lot of extra homework given in advanced/challenged classes and that is true... the homewokr that I get from my challenged classes is alot also.....and I think that if we had a lot more time in class to do the work that the teachers would get a lot more homework back than they do now.... I would definately recommend this websight to both teachers and students... this websight has so many key points that are so basci that many people would probably just think of them on their own if they really thought... BUt this is an OVERALL great websight to look @ and come to when you need help!!!"

02/11/2008:

"This article is very good with lots of good ideas. I am going to apply some of these ideas for my middle school son. It identifies a problem I have which is that my son does not know how to study because they do not teach this skill at school."

01/30/2008:

"thank you for your input, I found it very helpful. I have a 4th grader who has a very difficult teacher and I am trying so hard to equip her with the right skills and I am finding it very difficult. However, this article was very helpful and I will look to it often. Thank you again for your guidance. Sincerely Mrs. G."

10/9/2007:

"Excellent article. Thank you."

10/8/2007:

"Just as the article mentioned, I have found that my 8th grade daughter is not as quick with the +,-.* and / facts as she needs to be and has indeed suffered some on tests and homework. So we're going back to basics and doing drills and flash cards and home to reinforce these.
Also, one night when she said she didn't understand the math homework and just wanted me to sign it so the teacher would know she needed help, I sat down and began to do the problems myself without her seeing the answers. All of a sudden it became a challenge to her and we finished all 25 problems, with her correcting some of my mistakes. As her history teacher said to the parents, 'don't back off, they really do need you.'"

10/8/2007:

"MY CHILD IS IN 6TH. THE NEWS LETTERS/ARTICLES HAVE BEEN VERY HELPFUL FOR ME WITH THE TRANSITION FROM ELEMENTRY TO MIDDLE SCHOOL AS WELL AS HERS. THANKS. I DID ENJOY THE GREAT SCHOOLS UPDATES FOR PARENTS AND CHILDREN/TEENS TO REFLECT ON THAT PARTICULAR SCHOOL. "

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